AUSTIN, Texas—This semester, Patricia I. Hansen, UT Law's J. Waddy Bullion
Professor, is teaching “Democracy, Accountability and the Rule of Law
in the Americas." The class meets weekly in real-time video-conferencing
sessions with a concurrent seminar offered by John Ackerman at the Facultad
Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales (FLACSO) in Mexico City. The sessions include
presentations by guest speakers from government agencies in Mexico and Brazil,
and scholars in law, political science, sociology, and journalism from UT, FLACSO,
and other universities.

The seminar was inaugurated with a conference bringing legal scholars from the
U.S. and Mexico together in Austin to discuss “Accountability and the
Rule of Law in Mexico on the Threshold of the 2006 Elections.” The conference,
which was held at UT Law’s Eidman Courtroom on Sept. 8-9, was webcast
live and is archived here.

In addition, Professor Hansen will also speak at a second conference on “Current
Legal Developments in U.S.-Mexico Trade and Investment,” which will be
held in Mexico City at the Camino Real Hotel on Sept. 29-Oct. 1. This conference
is co-sponsored with UT Continuing Legal Education (UTCLE) and the U.S.-Mexico
Bar Association.

Professor Hansen (JD, Yale; MPA, Princeton) has taught at The University of
Texas School of Law since 1994. She currently holds the J. Waddy Bullion Professorship
in Law and is Director of the dual degree program in Law and Latin American
Studies. A leading scholar in the area of international economic law, Professor
Hansen has published numerous articles on the interplay between international
economic law and environmental and consumer protection and dispute settlement
in regional trade agreements. She has also done significant work on projects
aimed at strengthening the rule of law in Latin America, and is a member of
the American Law Institute and the Board of Directors of the U.S.-Mexico Bar
Association. She teaches courses on international trade; NAFTA; federal civil
procedure; and legal and political reform in Latin America. Prior to joining
the UT faculty, Professor Hansen clerked for John Porfilio of the U.S. Court
of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, and worked for five years as a litigator at
the law firm of Shea & Gardner in Washington, D.C.

Related Links:
Audio: “Accountability and the Rule of Law in Mexico on the Threshold
of the 2006 Elections”